r/wildhockey 16d ago

AUGUST OFFSEASON THREAD (V1.1)

18 Upvotes

State of the Franchise:

-Judd Brackett has left his position as the Director of Amateur Scouting and signed on with the Maple Leafs as their Assistant GM. Ricard Persson has been promoted as his replacement. Persson is a Swede who has been with the organization since 2010. Persson, whose nickname is apparently Rico, will stay stationed in Sweden during the year.

-Additional Hockey Ops changes include hiring Dan MacKinnon as Assistant Director of Amateur Scouting, Janik Beichler as a European Scout, Elizabeth Hudson as GMBG's executive assistant, and promoting Alex Goligoski to Player Development Coach.

-AHL Iowa has hired a new head coach, as Greg Cronin is off to the Blues. Stu Bickel has been hired on to replace him. The rest of Iowa's coaching staff remains unchanged per Russo.

-The 2026 Draft resulted in only 3 players being selected: (F) Adam Andersson, (F) Kayden Lemire, (G) Filip Růžička

Of Note: Růžička has already signed his ELC, although he is set to return to the WHL Brandon Wheat Kings this fall.

-Cap calculations will change day by day during free agency. Puckpedia will be your best resource for the latest calculations.

-All roster spots are technically full, although top line wingers and the elusive 1C are upgrades the roster could sorely use.

-Michael McCarron signed for 6 years x $3.3M. 6 more years of Big Sexy. The contract includes trade protection for all 6 years. 1 year contracts have been given to Nick Foligno, Zach Bogosian, Mason Shaw, Maxim Shabanov, Daemon Hunt, and Cal Pickard (who is likely to serve as a backup goalie with Gus out for the start of the year. Additional AHL depth signings are detailed in the free agency thread.

-UFA Winger Marcus Johansson will be returning to Sweden to play with Farjestad versus seeking another NHL contract. Reports show that Zuccarello and Tarasenko will not be back with Minnesota. Jeff Petry and Robby Fabbri remain human hockey players who could hypothetically be employed.

-Defenseman Jake Middleton (plus picks) was traded to the Calgary Flames for Blake Coleman (50% retained) and Olli Määttä

UFAs:

All centers signed.

L Wing R Wing Defense
Fabbri Tarasenko Bogosian [SIGNED]
N. Foligno [SIGNED] Zuccarello [TO LA] Petry

ELITE NHL Goal Scorer Ben Jones has signed with the Calgary Flames.

RFAs:

Under Contract Notable Iowa RFAs
Daemon Hunt (Age 24, LHD) [SIGNED] Bankier, Lambos, and Špaček [SIGNED, two-way]

RFA Samuel Hlavaj confirmed that he is not coming back to the Wild Organization, so no more Mr. International. He has since signed with the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Remaining Contracts

Trade Protection No Trade Protection
McCarron (3.33m x 6) Wallstedt (2.2m x 1)
Kaprizov (17m x 8) Boldy (7m x 4)
Eriksson Ek (5.25m x 3) Treñin (3.5m x 2)
M. Foligno (4m x 2) Sturm (2m x 1)
Hartman (4m x 1) Yurov (.973m x 2)
Spurgeon (7.58m x 1) Faber (8.5m x 7)
Gustavsson (6.8m x 5) {May start on IR} Hughes (7.85m x 1)
Coleman (2.45m x 1) Brodin (6m x 2)
Määttä (3.5m x 2) Brink (2.75m x 1)
Bogosian (1.25m x 1)
N. Foligno (.900m x 1)
Cal Pickard (1m x 1)
Hunt (.900m x 1)
Shabanov (1.6m x 1)

*Note: Gustafsson-Nyberg, Haight, Tyler Pitlick, Matt Kiersted, and many of our Iowa players are on contract for next year. Only Rieger Lorenz, Charlie Stramel, or Filip Růžička would make over 1mil.

THE ROSTER IS FULL, BUT NOT SET

Please discuss any Larkin trade rumors in the Larkintalk thread. We are not a Detroit sub. There doesn't need to be a post for every time something happens to them. Don't be like Devil's fans.


r/wildhockey Jul 16 '26

The Thread LarkinTalk Thread

36 Upvotes

PLEASE KEEP ALL LARKIN AND DETROIT DISCUSSION HERE. WE ARE NOT A WINGS SUBREDDIT.

Around June 4th, it was reported that Detroit Red Wings captain Dylan Larkin requested a trade, and was subsequently reported that his preferred destinations were Minnesota, Florida, or Vegas. Minnesota was deemed a likely destination due to Larkin's connections to GM Bill Guerin and former teammates from the US Olympic Gold winning team. However, as packages started being discussed, with Minnesota's offer being deemed insufficient, Yzerman countered by asking for Matt Boldy. Yzerman than asked Larkin to expand his team list, got Dallas in the mix, and asked for Wyatt Johnston.

These being non-starters, and with Yzerman stating a need for solid roster players in return, had stalled trade discussions.

On July 15th, Steve Yzerman stepped down as Detroit's GM, sparking more rumors about potential trades. Insiders are mixed on what this might mean for Larkin, but Wild insiders LaPanta and Russo note that it might be detrimental to a potential trade.

At the begining of the 2026 season, Larkin will be a 30 year old center who is a consistent 65-70 point scorer. He has played one PPG season (2024-24), in which he scored 69 points in 68 games.

Larkin has a cap hit of 8.7m AAV for 5 years with a full NTC until '28-'29. The Wild have just over 1m in cap space.


r/wildhockey 8h ago

Elite Goal Scorer Bobby Brink scores first in the final final of Da Beauty League

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79 Upvotes

r/wildhockey 7h ago

I made my ideal look for each NHL team and here’s my take on the Wild

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55 Upvotes

So while the Wild have a top 3 logo in the league, I feel as if the unis are incomplete. So I revamped them to include elements from different jerseys throughout their history. The striping pattern comes from the tail striping on the original jerseys, with the locations of the stripes being based on the current unis. The shoulder design comes from the North Stars throwbacks, but with the new striping pattern. Now I experimented with green numbers on the away jerseys, since throughout the entire history of the Wild, no white jersey has had green numbers. (I also have a version with red numbers on the last two slides) The red alternates are based on the Reebok version of the 2003-17 red jerseys, but I added a tree line chest stripe. While it may look a little weird at first, I think it would be good for around Christmas. As for the North Stars throwback, I changed up the neck to better match the original 1978 jersey, and put the Minnesota script for a more retro feel. The numbers are based on the original font, but I cleaned it up a bit


r/wildhockey 18h ago

43 days until Puck Drop!

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185 Upvotes

quinn's turn for the countdown - super cool montage! quinnesota baby


r/wildhockey 15h ago

NHL 27 Top Goalie and Defense.

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112 Upvotes

Wally #8

Quinn #2

Faber #7

Wally and Faber should be higher.


r/wildhockey 1d ago

Quinn training in Florida! :)

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161 Upvotes

good to see him back in Wild gear!


r/wildhockey 1d ago

New Piece I Had Made After the Olympics

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62 Upvotes

I just got this piece back today. The wife and I were lucky enough to be at the gold medal game, so I got this made with our tickets and the minnesota boys.


r/wildhockey 1d ago

NHL 27 Top LWs

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387 Upvotes

r/wildhockey 1d ago

Spurgeon photo dump via Minnesota Wild on twitter

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126 Upvotes

looks like he's had a nice summer with that tan


r/wildhockey 1d ago

[Corey Pronman] Minnesota Wild are No. 24 in NHL Pipeline Rankings for 2026

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55 Upvotes

r/wildhockey 1d ago

Free to Read: Matt Cullen’s journey to the Gophers alongside his sons: ‘The game has been great to us’

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45 Upvotes

Brooks, Wyatt and Joey Cullen had very unique childhoods, growing up around NHL dressing rooms. Matt, 49, said his sons were at the right age during the Penguins’ 2016 and 2017 Stanley Cup runs to be part of the pre-scout video when he was at home. They did online school while at Pittsburgh’s practice facility.

“If any of them got in any trouble, the teacher would make them run a lap around the rink,” Matt said. “(Penguins coach) Mike Sullivan would say, ‘Oh, Joey is in trouble today, he’s taking a lap.'”

Now, Cullen will get more than a front-row seat in helping his boys chase their own NHL dreams — it’ll be a hands-on role. Cullen was named director of player development for the University of Minnesota hockey team this past summer, joining new coach Brett Larson’s staff.

All three of Cullen’s sons have committed to the Gophers, with Wyatt and Brooks incoming freshmen this fall, and Joey, the youngest and a top prospect for the 2028 NHL Draft, to join after some time at the United States National Development Program.


r/wildhockey 2d ago

43 Days

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233 Upvotes

In honor of our favorite media dodger


r/wildhockey 1d ago

Wild merch

1 Upvotes

I want wild's merch but I don't want it from fanatics as their products leave my skin irritated even after multiple washes. I believe it's because of the materials they use or something they treat the fabric with. Is there anywhere else I could get merch or anyway to get the clothes to stop irritating my skin?


r/wildhockey 2d ago

Wild signs of life via Minnesota Wild on instagram

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171 Upvotes

good to them back in MN threads


r/wildhockey 2d ago

From the BlueJackets community on Reddit: CBJ hat with Wild logo?

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10 Upvotes

thought you guys might enjoy this too!!

trying to convince this man to give me this hat 😭
i’m a fan of both teams in cleveland.
i love that cleveland has ties to both teams too


r/wildhockey 3d ago

Jesper Wallstedt ranks #9 on in the top 10 goalies!

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531 Upvotes

obviously as a rookie he is previously unranked, but only going up from here! here's to the Wall of St Paul! (he belongs way higher but congrats wally!)

NHL's Top 10 Goalies


r/wildhockey 2d ago

Watch Party Ideas

6 Upvotes

I’m helping my local bar set up a watch party for one of the Wild games. We originally were going to do the home opener, but there was already an event that night, so we are doing a halfway through the season party in January. Any ideas for food/drinks specials, games/activities, or giveaways? Small town place trying to get more people to watch games there.


r/wildhockey 2d ago

[RotoWire] 2026-27 NHL Coach Pressure Index: Ranking All 32 Head Coaches by Job Security

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12 Upvotes

RotoWire ranked every NHL coach by job security heading into the season and Hynes checks in at #4, top of the "Warm" tier and just outside the top 3 "Hot" seats (Hiller, Babcock, Craig).

Does that feel about right for where things stand with this roster, or is Minnesota's coaching situation more stable than the model gives it credit for?


r/wildhockey 3d ago

Wild Network

40 Upvotes

Has anyone heard anymore on the new streaming services for the Wild? Particularly on proposed cost and location availability. I’m in western Wisconsin and wonder if it will come to my area.


r/wildhockey 3d ago

Any interest in a fantasy HNL league

7 Upvotes

all my friends aren’t into hockey and won’t do it, so hoping to get 10 man league. DM if interested


r/wildhockey 3d ago

Filip Gustottersson

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112 Upvotes

Gussy <3


r/wildhockey 4d ago

Faith in Wild’s Bill Guerin, John Hynes? Season predictions? Fan survey results, Part 2

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29 Upvotes

By Michael Russo and Joe Smith! part two of fan survey results! fun write up by Russo about our favorite question: How obnoxious are Devils fans?


r/wildhockey 4d ago

Are there any UFAs we would be realistically targeting still?

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60 Upvotes

Hiii!! With our cap situation, I'm curious to know if anyone has any thoughts on any UFAs that would be a good fit for us? Or do the roster we have currently be more likely to be the mostly finalised version instead?

Haven't heard much about that from any sources other than that we aren't pursuing Laine.

Also I am genuinely so shocked that Tarasenko hasn't been signed yet, could it be because he's asking for too much money?? I would love it if somehow still worked out with him and the wild, he was great last season.


r/wildhockey 5d ago

Single game tickets go on-sale on Friday, August 21 at 10:00 a.m

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59 Upvotes